In the backdrop of controversies over setting up of SEZs, the central government has unveiled a new policy which provides for discouraging acquisition of agricultural land for non-farming purposes and setting up a commission to look into resettlement aspects.The National Rehabilitation and Resettlement Policy, 2007 also entails setting up of a committee to review and monitor the progress of implementation of rehabilitation and resettlement schemes across the country."Acquisition of agricultural land for non-agricultural use in a project may be kept to the minimum; multi-cropped land may be avoided to the extent possible for such purposes, and acquisition of irrigated land, if unavoidable, may be kept to the minimum," the policy states."Waste land, degraded land or un-irrigated land should be the option for acquisition," it says.This assumes significance as acquisition of farming land for SEZs has triggered violent protests, including that in Nandigram in West Bengal.Nandigram has been on the boil as local people have been opposing the acquisition of farm land for a SEZ proposed to be set up by Indonesia's Salem Group.The new policy envisages setting up a Rehabilitation Commission at the national level to look into the settlement issues of the families displaced from their land following its acquisition for projects.
